Rick Mayer
Digital ProducerI’m the online producer for Health News Florida, a collaboration of public radio stations and NPR that delivers news about health care issues.
This is an important position at WUSF. In 2019, the typical U.S. family spent about 11 percent of its annual income on health care, so it stands to reason issues of cost, quality, access and innovation are consequential to all Floridians. Then COVID-19 came along, and the weight of these matters gained exponentially. I take our reporting on these topics quite seriously, as I’m sure you do, too.
Literally growing up in newsrooms and a little serendipity along the way prepared me well for the post. Here’s the abridged version: I’m a Tampa guy, graduating from H.B. Plant High and thrust into the world with my USF degree rolled tightly in hand. From there, it was three mostly sleepless decades as an editor at The Tampa Tribune, then developing and managing an online journal serving physician executives. There’s also my side job editing a statewide health magazine.
And being married to a longtime hospital nurse/case manager helps; dinner conversation often gives me a feel of what’s happening on the front lines. The good and not-so-good.
Of course, my time isn’t always spent flailing in the health news vortex. You’re actually more likely to find me breaking down the Bucs, Bulls or Bolts after a game, taking Oodle the poodle to the dog park or tinkering the backroom piano while vicariously reliving my former life as a musician. (Remember, kids: Parents of percussionists have plenty of patience. Plenty!)
Contact Rick on X @rmayer2361 or by email at Mayer1@wusf.org.
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The 14-story building, slated to open in 2030, will add 440 beds, 24 operating rooms, and endoscopy and imaging services to the 172-acre complex in downtown Orlando. -
Rice was a defensive force credited with 69.5 sacks over his six seasons in Tampa Bay. That includes a stellar Super Bowl XXXVII performance. -
According to Modern Healthcare, the letter demands the hospitals and a law firm stop spreading "false statements" about Leapfrog Group and its safety grades process. -
After games at Atlanta and Houston, Tampa Bay hosts the New York Jets and NFL champ Philadelphia. The defending NFC South winners close with a three-game homestand and visits to Miami and Carolina. -
That agreement means all Lightning games will be televised over the air on WXPX and no longer on FanDuel Sports, which was available locally only through Spectrum cable or pay streaming. -
In announcing his plan for the legislation, Gov. Ron DeSantis described the addition of fluoride to public water as "forced medication" and "taking away a choice." -
BayCare Manatee will rise next to a new medical arts building on Moccasin Wallow Road at I-75. When it opens in 2028, it will be the only hospital in the county north of the Manatee River. -
The group seeking to attract a team - perhaps the Tampa Bay Rays - says John Morgan, founder of the Morgan & Morgan law firm, is also financially involved in the effort. -
The panel has been tasked with reforming and streamlining the nation's disaster response and recovery as the president shifts more responsibility from FEMA to the states. -
Hogs for the Cause, a New Orleans-based charity known for its barbecue fundraisers, will renovate apartments to provide quarters to families while their kids receive care.
